Divorce : a comperative study between Catholic and Islamic countries

Abstract

The main aim of this thesis is to provide a well defined understanding on the ethical, legal and religious aspects of the institution of divorce. Even though the right to divorce is not sanctioned in the ECIIR, it is related with the fundamental human rights: the right to marry and to form a family. Thus the prohibition of divorce is a direct legal restriction to the right of getting married which obeys the principle of the indissolubility of marriage. This work builds up the relationship that exists between religion and law on divorce. How strong is the influence of religion on the law on divorce? Therefore, the systems analyzed are divided according to religion: Islamic and Christian (Catholics).The case studies for Islamic countries are Morocco and Iran; for the Christian countries are: Malta and Italy. Even though Iran and Morocco are both Islamic countries, the comparison regarding divorce issue is really interesting, as Iran could be regarded as too special in today's Muslim world, which adheres to Sunni School of Islamic Law and Morocco, which adheres exclusively to the Maliki rule, therefore offering valuable points for comparison and contrast with Iran. Furthermore, as Malta is one of the three states where divorce is prohibited, I will analyze various legal and religious aspects concerning this issue. Through this work, I would like to prove whether or not the prohibition of divorce by a state protects the unity of the family. Divorce is a legal remedy which as such only severs the legal aspects of the marriage bond. The institution is not only a private one, but is also public; therefore it has serious effects in the society.